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July 14, 2026

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US President Donald Trump gestures as he steps off Air Force One to board the new Qatari-gifted Boeing plane, en route to the United States following his participation in the NATO Summit at Royal Air Force Mildenhall on July 8, 2026, in Mildenhall, England.

Trump says US to strike Iran's Pickaxe Mountain nuclear site

Satellite imagery has detected recent construction at the underground facility.

The Liberian-flagged container vessel MSC Reef is seen docked along a pier at the Khor Fakkan Container Terminal, the only natural deep-sea port in the region and one of the major container ports in Sharjah Emirate, along the Gulf of Oman, on June 28, 2026.

Explainer

Trump’s Hormuz playbook echoes Iran’s attempts to monetize waterway

On Monday, Trump declared that the United States would become the "guardian" of the strategic waterway, reimpose a blockade on Iranian shipping and seek reimbursement equivalent to 20% of all cargo transiting the strait.

Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images

Oil climbs after US strikes Iran, Trump vows to control Strait of Hormuz

US Central Command said in a statement early on Monday that it struck dozens of Iranian targets overnight as Iran targeted American bases across the Gulf.

U.S. President Donald Trump returns to Joint Base Andrews on July 09, 2026 in Washington, DC. Trump, switched from the old Air Force One to the new Air Force One while stopping in the U.K. at RAF Mildenhall Air Force Base was returning from his visit to Ankara, Turkey where he attended the NATO summit. (Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images)

Trump says US to resume naval blockade of Iran's ports

President Donald Trump countered Iran's attempts to collect tolls on shipping via the Strait of Hormuz by announcing the US would do so at a rate of 20% for all cargo transiting the waterway.

Latest News

Analysis

Why Iran is making infrastructure next front in Mideast conflict

A view of the B1 bridge is pictured, a day after it was destroyed by a strike in Karaj, around 20miles (35kms) southwest of Tehran, April 3, 2026.

A correspondent in Tehran

By A correspondent in Tehran

In Tehran, reporting on politics

How Iran war could impact oil markets in 2027

Igor IVANKO / AFP via Getty Images

Elizabeth Hagedorn

Diplomatic Correspondent

In Washington, DC, reporting on diplomacy, regional politics, human rights

Sabena Siddiqui

In Karachi, reporting on South Asia, Middle East, Iran

A correspondent in Tehran

In Tehran, reporting on politics

Benjamin Houghton

In Durham, reporting on China in the Middle East

Rahim Rahimov

In Baku, reporting on Middle East-Caucasus ties

Mehrnaz Samimi

In Washington, DC, reporting on Iranian culture

A general view during the meeting of the Syrian Constitutional Committee at the United Nations headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland October 31, 2019. Martial Trezzini/Pool via REUTERS - RC1A1AD4CDA0

Astana trio, UN launch Syrian Constitutional Committee

The launch of the Syrian Constitutional Committee provides hopes for a fresh start, but there's also enough room for skepticism.

TEHRAN, IRAN - MAY 29: Iran's top nuclear negotiator and presidential candidate for the upcoming elections, Saeed Jalili, waves during a campaign rally, attended by his female supporters on May 29, 2013 in Tehran, Iran. Jalili, who is running in next month's presidential elections says he will promote a policy of resistance against the West if elected. The elections are scheduled for June 14 and Jalili has stated that he wishes to revive policies of the 1979 Islamic revolution that brought clerics to power.

Hard-line brothers seek to oust Iran's old guard conservatives

A new wave of Iranian hard-liners who embrace the teachings of the late Ayatollah Khomeini is looking to replace the entrenched conservatives that the younger grouping thinks have strayed from the path.

Tehran decries foreign influence in Iraq protests

Though they acknowledge the legitimate demands of Iraqi protesters, Iranian officials are focusing on the role of foreign countries they accuse of using the protests to create chaos and instability.

Oil pump jacks pump oil in Al-Jbessa oil field in Al-Shaddadeh town of Al-Hasakah governorate April 2, 2010. REUTERS/Stringer (SYRIA - Tags: BUSINESS ENERGY) - GM1EA9B1T8R01

Syria looks to revitalize oil production to attract investors

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad is tightening the regime's grip on oil fields with an eye toward their eventual rehabilitation.

U.N. Special Envoy for Syria Geir Pedersen talks with Ahmad Kuzbari, co-chair for the Syrian Government, and other members ot their delegation after the first meeting of the new Syrian Constitutional Committee at the United Nations in Geneva, Switzerland, October 30, 2019. REUTERS/Denis Balibouse - RC145F453450

As Syria constitution talks kick off, is Kurdish administration 'finished'?

As representatives from Syria's government, opposition and civil society meet in Geneva to draft a new constitution for the war-torn country, Al-Monitor spoke with French academic Fabrice Balanche on prospects for the talks.

Lebanese army soldiers stand on a street in Beirut, Lebanon October 30, 2019. REUTERS/Mohamed Azakir - RC11CBA3CB80

Iran worried by Lebanon 'vacuum' after Hariri resignation

The political uncertainty arising from the resignation of Lebanon's prime minister is sparking worries in Iran, which maintains key interests in the tiny but strategic Arab country.

Iran's hard-liners force controversial film off screen

A controversial movie about an honor killing has been removed from Iranian theaters after pressure from infuriated hard-liners.

Abbas Mousavi, spokesman for Iran's Foreign Ministry, gives a press conference in the capital Tehran on May 28, 2019. (Photo by ATTA KENARE / AFP) (Photo credit should read ATTA KENARE/AFP/Getty Images)

Iran downplays significance of Baghdadi's death

Iranian officials have shrugged off the news that the United States killed the Islamic State leader.

U.S. President Donald Trump makes a statement at the White House following reports that U.S. forces attacked Islamic State leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi in northern Syria, in Washington, U.S., October 27, 2019. REUTERS/Joshua Roberts - RC1BB3AB3D30

Islamic State leader dead in US raid

Islamic State leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi was killed during a raid in northwestern Syria, says President Donald Trump.

A man walks away from the U.S Treasury Department in Washington, U.S., August 6, 2018. REUTERS/Brian Snyder - RC1FD03EA500

Sanctions experts say new US Treasury measure could inhibit humanitarian trade with Iran

The US Treasury's new Iran "humanitarian" mechanism is seen by experts as a tool to inform new sanctions on the country.

What IDF chiefs won’t say out loud

Some of Israel’s previous military chiefs took a courageous stand and publicly stated that there was no military solution for the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, but current Chief of Staff Aviv Kochavi is on the same wavelength as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Iran's Foreign Minister Javad Zarif attends a joint news conference after meeting with Norway's Foreign Minister Ine Eriksen Soereide in Oslo, Norway, August 22, 2019. NTB Scanpix/Stian Lysberg Solum/ via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY. NORWAY OUT. NO COMMERCIAL OR EDITORIAL SALES IN NORWAY. - RC169141C270

Zarif urges united nonaligned front against US

Four years after signing of the JCPOA, Iran’s Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said relying on the United States is a "delusion."